Medicare Part D - Research and Data from KFF

New $2,000 Medicare Part D Cap Could Reduce Out-of-Pocket Drug Costs for Over One Million Beneficiaries Beginning Next Year, Including Tens of Thousands of Beneficiaries in Most States

Feb 8, 2024

News Release

A KFF analysis shows that a new out-of-pocket spending cap in Medicare Part D could translate into savings for well over 1 million beneficiaries when it takes effect next year, including more than 100,000 people each in California, Florida and Texas, based on analyses of drug spending in 2021. The $2,000 cap, part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, will lead to thousands of dollars in savings for Medicare patients who take high-cost drugs…

Millions of People with Medicare Will Benefit from the New Out-of-Pocket Drug Spending Cap Over Time

Feb 8, 2024

Issue Brief

In 2025, Medicare beneficiaries will pay no more than $2,000 out of pocket for prescription drugs covered under Part D, Medicare’s outpatient drug benefit, due to a provision in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. This analysis examines how many Medicare Part D enrollees spent $2,000 or more out of pocket in 2021 and over multiple years, both nationally and at the state level, to show how many people over time could benefit from the…

3 Charts: Medicare Drug Price Negotiations

Jan 31, 2024

News Release

Under the Inflation Reduction Act, the federal government for the first time will negotiate directly with drug companies to determine the prices that Medicare will pay for certain high expenditure drugs covered under Medicare Part D (starting in 2026) and Part B (starting in 2028). Part D covers retail prescription drugs and Part B covers physician-administered medications. This new requirement is the culmination of years of debate among lawmakers in Congress, and the Centers for…

10 Reasons Why Medicare Advantage Enrollment is Growing and Why It Matters

Jan 30, 2024

Issue Brief

This issue briefs lays out 10 reasons why Medicare Advantage enrollment has been growing and why we can expect more growth in the years to come.

The New Help for Medicare Beneficiaries with High Drug Costs That Few Seem to Know About

Dec 12, 2023

Policy Watch

This policy watch highlights a change coming to the Medicare Part D drug benefit that will cap Part D enrollees' out-of-pocket drug costs, beginning in 2024, resulting in savings of thousands of dollars for high-cost drugs - a change that recent KFF tracking poll results show few older adults know about.

Medicare Advantage 2024 Spotlight: First Look

Nov 15, 2023

Issue Brief

For 2024, the average Medicare beneficiary has access to 43 Medicare Advantage plans and can choose from plans offered by 8 firms. Among the majority of Medicare Advantage plans that cover prescription drugs, 66 percent will charge no premium in addition to the monthly Medicare Part B premium. As in previous years, the vast majority of Medicare Advantage plans will offer supplemental benefits, including fitness, dental, vision, and hearing benefits.

With Medicare Open Enrollment Underway, Beneficiaries Typically Will Have a Choice of 43 Medicare Advantage Plans for 2024, Consistent with 2023 But More than Double The Number From 2018

Nov 8, 2023

News Release

With open enrollment underway, Medicare beneficiaries have until December 7th to review and select their coverage for 2024. They also have a lot of options to choose from, as two new KFF analyses show. For many beneficiaries, the first decision is whether to enroll in traditional Medicare (often with supplemental coverage and a stand-alone prescription drug plan) or Medicare Advantage, the private plans sponsored by insurance companies that now cover more than half of all…

Medicare Part D in 2024: A First Look at Prescription Drug Plan Availability, Premiums, and Cost Sharing

Nov 8, 2023

Issue Brief

Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage is available for people with Medicare who enroll in private plans, either a stand-alone prescription drug plan (PDP) for people in traditional Medicare, or a Medicare Advantage plan that covers all Medicare benefits, including prescription drugs (MA-PD). This issue brief provides an overview of Part D plan availability and premiums in 2024 and key trends over time.

How Medicare’s New Drug Price Negotiation Program Could Expand Access to Selected Drugs

Sep 26, 2023

Issue Brief

This brief examines how Part D enrollees’ access to and utilization of the first set of 10 selected drugs could be affected by the new Part D coverage and formulary requirements for selected drugs established by the Inflation Reduction Act and in CMS guidance, as well as the potential for lower out-of-pocket costs.

KFF Research Shows that Medicare Open Enrollment TV Ads Are Dominated by Medicare Advantage Plans Featuring Celebrities, Active and Fit Seniors, and Promises of Savings and Extra Benefits Without Fundamental Plan Information

Sep 20, 2023

News Release

The annual blitz of ads for Medicare Advantage plans has become a rite of fall, as health insurers, brokers and other third parties seek to court enrollees for these private plans, which are offered to the 65 million people with Medicare during the program’s open enrollment season. In advance of the open enrollment period starting on October 15, KFF reviewed more than 1,200 unique television ads that aired more than 643,000 times last year to…

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